THE EDITOR, Sir:
LEGALISING ABORTIONS will not stop illegal, unlicensed and unsafe abortions from occurring, and I am saddened to see this fallacy being asserted with such frequency. The problem with the assertion is that it ignores the root causes of the problem, as well as ignores the rights of one of the parties involved in every abortion procedure, the child.
If we wish to reduce illegal abortions, then what we need to concentrate on is making sure that there are easy-to-access alternatives to killing the unborn child as well as doing our best to ensure that an unwanted pregnancy doesn't occur in the first place. Concrete, and already legal, steps that we are able to take is to ensure that our children receive adequate sex education which covers the biology of sex and reproduction, contraceptive methods as well as the obvious benefits of abstinence.
We can also take steps to ensure that those organisations which are set up to help unwed mothers and women in crisis are properly funded and staffed, by donating money to these organisations and volunteering our time so that we can assist these organisations in providing a well needed service. If we work together to ensure that no mother feels that her only alternative is killing her unborn child, we will be able to reduce the rate of illegal abortions without denying the child the most basic of human rights as described by the United Nations, the right to life.
I am, etc.,
RICHARD DALEY
daley_richard@hotmail.com
